Russia has developed a new control system for FPV kamikaze drones that is not afraid of electronic warfare systems.
According to the American publication "The War Zone," these drones are now controlled not only via a wireless communication channel but also via a physical fiber optic line.
This control method is immune to electronic warfare systems but imposes certain limitations on the system's use.
A kamikaze drone on a fiber optic line can travel more than 10 kilometers from the operator, according to the publication (while many Russian FPV kamikaze drones have an average flight range of 5-12 km, — ed. note.). There are other advantages to this type of control:
- the drone becomes invulnerable to electronic warfare systems and obstacles to the wireless signal in the form of buildings, hills, and tree foliage;
- it is capable of transmitting large amounts of data to the operator faster, including a higher quality video stream;
- a wired FPV drone does not emit electronic radiation, which is used to calculate both the drone and its operator in the wireless control option. This means that working with a wired FPV kamikaze drone may be less associated with a fatal risk for the operator.
"The War Zone" notes that this concept is not new in the world: in particular, a number of Israeli and American gunsmiths have been using wired guidance for several decades. It can be seen in the Israeli Spike family of anti-tank missiles and in the first generations of American TOW ATGMs. However, it is not yet as widespread for drones.
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